Every year when September rolls around, something shifts in the Pacific Northwest.
The mornings get a little cooler. The leaves start thinking about changing. And across the Yakima Valley, hop bines that have spent all summer climbing toward the sun are finally ready to harvest.
Fresh hop season doesn't last long, which is exactly what makes it special.
For brewers, it means early mornings, truckloads of freshly picked hops, and a race against the clock to capture flavors and aromas that only exist for a few short weeks each year. For the Deschutes team, it means loading up and heading north. The drive through the valley has become a tradition of its own. Endless rows of hops stretching toward the horizon. The unmistakable smell of harvest hanging in the air. Farmers, brewers, and crews all working around the clock to make the most of the season.
It's one of our favorite times of year.
This year feels especially meaningful.
Fresh Hop Fresh Squeezed is brewed with freshly harvested Citra hops from our friends at Westwood Farms. While Citra has become one of the most recognizable hop varieties in craft beer today, we've had a connection to it since the beginning.
Long before Citra became a household name among hop lovers, Deschutes saw its potential. We were one of the early breweries helping showcase the variety's bright citrus character, and we even sponsored some of the first acreage planted as growers worked to bring this now-iconic hop to life.
A few years later, Fresh Squeezed IPA arrived and helped introduce even more drinkers to the vibrant orange, grapefruit, and tropical fruit notes that make Citra so distinctive.
Now, during the brief window of fresh hop season, those stories come together.
The same hop variety that helped define Fresh Squeezed. The growers who continue to push hop quality forward. The harvest season that reminds us why we fell in love with brewing in the first place.
Fresh Hop Fresh Squeezed starts with freshly harvested Citra hops leaving Westwood Farms and making their way direct ly to our brewhouse. Instead of being kiln-dried and packaged like traditional hops, they're used fresh from the field, allowing us to capture aromas and flavors that simply can't be replicated any other time of year.
The result is Fresh Squeezed through the lens of harvest season. Familiar citrus notes layered with vibrant fresh-cut hop character, bright aromatics, and a sense of place that can only come from brewing with hops picked just hours earlier.
It's a beer that celebrates the season, the farmers behind it, and a hop that's been part of the Deschutes story for years.
Fresh hop season doesn't stick around for long. Neither does this beer.
Find Fresh Hop Fresh Squeezed while it lasts and raise a pint to harvest season.
